Mariners announce rotation plan with Bryce Miller set to return | Notebook

CHICAGO - With an excess of now-healthy starting-pitching depth - something envied by almost every team in Major League Baseball - the Mariners have made a decision on how to incorporate Bryce Miller back onto their MLB roster.

Prior to Saturday's game at Rate Field, Mariners manager Dan Wilson announced that the team will go to a six-man rotation for the time being with Miller scheduled to be reinstated from the injured list during the upcoming series in Houston.

Our plan is that Bryce will slide into that third day in Houston, which I believe is the 13th," Wilson said.

Indeed, Miller will pitch Wednesday in Game 3 of the four-game series vs. the rival Astros at Daikin Park. The Mariners will reslot their rotation, moving Luis Castillo and Emerson Hancock around.

The current pitching probables:

* Sunday - Logan Gilbert vs. White Sox

* Monday - Bryan Woo vs. Astros

* Tuesday - George Kirby vs. Astros

* Wednesday - Bryce Miller vs. Astros

* Thursday - Luis Castillo vs. Astros

* Friday - Emerson Hancock vs. Padres

The Mariners are two games into a stretch of 13 games in 13 days, so the six-man rotation works for the time being.

Miller threw a bullpen session Saturday afternoon at Rate Field in preparation for his first start of the 2026 season. He has been on the injured list after straining an oblique muscle in his first start of spring training.

The decision to go to a six-man rotation for the immediate future was logical.

"Right now, with no off days, it's easy," Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said. "We can just run them six through, but then we have to figure out a more creative way to do it."

That more creative way comes with certain boundaries.

"One thing that's not a consideration is sending someone to the bullpen," Dipoto said. "The other thing that's not a consideration is sending somebody to Triple-A."

Why?

"If you go to the bullpen, you don't maintain your pitch volume for very long," Dipoto said. "And that's the worst thing that could happen to the depth of our starting rotation is taking one of our top six starting pitchers, send them to the bullpen, and then 10 days later, their pitch volume is no longer a factor. That's part of the challenge."

That leaves the Mariners with two options - staying with a six-man rotation for an extended period or piggybacking Castillo and Miller in one game with each getting three to four innings of work.

With off days scheduled for three upcoming Thursdays - May 21, May 28 and June 4 - a six-man rotation would mean pitchers would be pitching once a week.

"I don't think our guys would like pitching once a week," Dipoto said. "And we want to make sure our best pitchers pitch."

And it would also mean that everyone would pitch less. The Mariners don't want Bryan Woo and George Kirby making fewer starts.

The Mariners are leaning toward the piggyback option.

"We'll figure out the thing that works for everybody," Dipoto said. "Hopefully Luis has a good one (Saturday), and we'll take it from there. But Bryce will throw in Houston, and once we get through Bryce's start, we'll figure out how all the pieces match up. Minimally we know Bryce will then need a minimum of four days off. So four days before we determine what comes next with 100% certainty, but there's only two options."

Remembering Bobby Cox

Bobby Cox, the Hall of Fame manager of the Atlanta Braves for more than two decades, died Saturday at the age of 84.

Wilson opened his pregame media session remembering Cox.

"Obviously, it's a sad day for baseball, losing somebody like that," Wilson said. "I remember coming up with Cincinnati early, playing a lot of games in Atlanta and against that team, and nothing but incredible respect for the way they played and the manager that he was. He's touched a lot of guys in this game, and just it's a sad day. Baseball's lost a gem for sure."

Mariners mental skills coach Adam Bernero played for Cox and the Braves in 2005. A right-handed reliever, Bernero made 36 appearances for a Braves team that went 90-72 and lost in the National League Division Series to the Astros, who would go on to appear in the World Series.

"I only had that one year there in Atlanta, and I always tell people, it was my favorite year as a player, just because I think it had a lot to do with his leadership," Bernero said. "We had a great team too. But Bobby was just one of those leaders that you wanted to go to battle for."

Bernero's biggest takeaway from Cox as a manager?

"He was really good at speaking the truth," Bernero said. "He'd tell you exactly how it was. There was a lot of clarity, which gave you a lot of confidence in doing what you were doing. He always set clear expectations."

Cox had a 2,504-2001 record over 29 seasons - 25 with the Braves over two different stints and four with the Blue Jays. Famously, he was ejected 162 times in his career - an MLB record unlikely to be broken.

"It's funny, people talk about the ejections," Bernero said. "He just demanded excellence from everyone. It didn't matter if it was players or the umpires. That's just sort of who he was, and that's what made him so good.

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This story was originally published May 9, 2026 at 4:55 PM.